Youth Resources

This page includes links to web-based resources and clearinghouses focused on youth development and empowerment, resource manuals and toolkits for for educators and community-based providers and organizers, and the most up-to-date scholarly articles on positive youth empowerment.

This page includes links to web-based resources and clearinghouses with an emphasis on youth mental and behavioral health, including web resources and links to fact sheets for policymakers, educators, and community-based providers and organizers. You will also find full text PDFs of peer-reviewed scholarly articles about mental and behavioral issues specific to LGBT, African American, Native American, and disabled communities.

Children’s Mental Health

Research and Training Center for Children’s Mental Health, Department of Child and Family Services. A review of assessment tools designed for use at the organizational level. Designed to identify and describe the organizational factors that lead to cultural competence in organizations.

Adolescent Sexual Health

Established in 1980 as the Center for Population Options, Advocates for Youth champions efforts to help young people make informed and responsible decisions about their reproductive and sexual health. Advocates believes it can best serve the field by boldly advocating for a more positive and realistic approach to adolescent sexual health.

Resources by Population

Report from Circles of Care, a SAMHSA program providing grants to providers using culturally competent strategies to better serve American Indian and Alaska Native Youth.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

Substance use is highly prevalent among homeless, street-involved young people. Societal estrangement is often associated with substance use, particularly among this population. Polysubstance use was highly prevalent and most reported marijuana as their drug of choice. Findings indicate that identiﬁcation with homeless culture was the most highly predictive domain of social estrangement for both alcohol and drug dependency. Implications for services to this population are discussed.

Travelers are a migratory subgroup of homeless youth who may be especially prone to engaging in risky behavior. Mediation analyses suggest that travelers’ deviant peer associations and disconnection to conventional individuals and institutions may drive their elevated substance use. Differences in sexual risk behaviors are likely attributable to demographic differences between the two groups. Overall, these differences between travelers and non-travelers suggest different service needs and the need for different service approaches.